The present invention relates to a support device to be worn by an individual to maintain the shoulders of the individual in a correct posture position, especially when the individual is performing repetitive motions for a long period of time.
There are a variety of known support devices and apparatuses, which are currently available in the market place, that facilitate maintaining the neck, the back, the upper back, the spine, etc. in a correct position. However, many of these devices are somewhat cumbersome to utilize and do not function properly to maintain the shoulders of an individual in the correct posturexe2x80x94they do not exert both a rearward and a downward force on the shoulders to induce correct posture. Moreover, many of these currently available devices and apparatuses are fairly difficult to utilize and are relatively expensive to manufacture.
Wherefore, it is an object of the present invention to overcome the above noted drawbacks associated with the prior art support devices and apparatuses.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a flexible, lightweight shoulder support device that facilitates positioning the shoulders of an individual in the correct posture position, to minimize any pain and discomfort experienced by a wearer, especially when the wearer is performing repetitive motion for a long period of time.
A further object of the present invention is to provide a relatively inexpensive shoulder support device which can be easily worn, in an undetected manner, underneath ordinary clothing of the wearer.
Yet another object of the invention is to provide a shoulder support device which simultaneously applies both a suitable rearward and downward pressure or force, on each shoulder of the wearer, to bias both shoulders of the wearer of the device into the correct posture position and minimize any pain and/or discomfort experienced by the wearer during use of the shoulder support device.
A still further object of the invention is to provide a shoulder support device which does not have any shoulder strap members overlying or overlapping the spine of the wearer of the device, i.e. only the single layerbase member overlaps the spine, to minimize any discomfort and/or pain experienced by the wearer of the shoulder support device in the spinal area.
Another object of the invention is to provide a shoulder support device which prevents, or minimizes at the very least, an individual from slouching when working at a desk, a computer, etc. for an extend period of time.
A still further object of the invention is to allow an individual to retain or maintain his or her muscle tone due to the continued ability of the individual to work, play, exercise, etc. and thus continue to move over a wide range of motions.
The present invention relates to a shoulder support device for facilitating correct posture of shoulders of a wearer, the shoulder support device comprising: an elongate base member having first and second opposed free ends, each of the first and second opposed free ends having a mating attachment component to facilitate releasable attachment of the first and second opposed free ends with one another, and a spine support area being provided along an intermediate portion of the elongate base member for overlying a spine of the wearer; a pair of spaced apart shoulder strap members each having first and second opposed ends, the first end of each shoulder strap member being secured to the elongate base member adjacent the spine support area, and the second end of each of the shoulder strap member being secured to an intermediate portion of the elongate base member such that the second end of each of the shoulder strap member is located to communicate with an arm pit of the wearer, during use, whereby each of the pair of spaced apart shoulder strap members exerts a resulting rearward and downward basing force on each shoulder of the wearer to influence each shoulder of the wearer into a correct posture position.
The above and other objects of the present invention will be further understood with reference to the following description and accompanying drawings as well as the appended claims.